An Open Wound
by the strings
Summary: When Magnus got an urgent call from Clary, he hadn't thought his task would be to accomplish the impossible. Will he be able to deal with the horror set before him? Malec centric, but focuses on the bond between Parabatai. Magnus/Alec. Jace/Alec (Brotherly love).
1. Chapter 1

**A****_/N: This story is not for the weak of heart. It is somewhat gruesome and there is some tragedy. I decided to stray from my comfort zone and try something a little morbid. It is Malec centric but it deals with the strong relationship between Parabatai. _**

**_ My goal was to make you cry, let me know if I succeeded! :)_**

**_Disclaimer: I own nothing but the plot. Cassandra Clare is a goddess who owns everything else! (same for next chapter)_**

_**WARNINGS: Blood, violent themes, heartbreak, suspense, all that fun stuff. **_

_**Enjoy! **_

"Clarissa?" Magnus called out to the crouching figure. Her shadow extended far behind her as if she were wearing a cloak made entirely of darkness. The alleyway was littered with trash and old leaves from the previous fall that no one had cleaned up. She was sat in the middle of it, her hands working erratically to apply runes on the person who lay motionless in front of her.

_A Shadowhunter. _Magnus thought. That was why she had called him to come so urgently. He couldn't make out who it was but his blood ran cold, and his breaths became shorter and uneven.

He had many Shadowhunter allies but he kept finding himself praying—to a god he didn't believe in anymore—that it wasn't Alexander.

Clary looked up, her eyes just barely visible in the dim streetlight. They were pleading and filled with tears. As Magnus walked closer he could see her hair matted with blood, just as fresh as the blood pooling on the concrete around her and the unidentified Nephilim.

"Magnus." She said, her voice raw as if she had been screaming. He could hear her desperation, her complete and utter heartbreak. He could also hear her denial. She refused to accept the horror that was right in front of her.

Magnus breathed in and held it, finally getting close enough to see the fallen boy.

He was blond.

Magnus breathed out, but it was only partially in relief. It wasn't Alec, but his _Parabatai_, Jace. Jace may have been an arrogant bastard with to much pride for his own good, but Magnus had felt a connection with him, as well as Alec. He was strong and had a passionate heart. Seeing him sprawled out, with blood stains blooming from his chest, was like seeing a loved one dead. He had lost one Herondale before and never wanted to repeat the experience.

So he wasn't going to.

He knelt down next to clary and unwound his scarf. He bundled it up into a ball and pressed it to the wound in Jace's chest.

"How long has he been like this?" Magnus asked. Clary didn't reply, she just stared at Magnus's hands. "Clary!" Magnus demanded. She snapped out of her trance, yet remained in a half daze.

"Just around ten minutes. We... We were taking a short-cut. He... He insisted he knew the way..." She blinked rapidly. "We didn't know there were demons here. His sensor didn't pick up anything."

Magnus closed his eyes for half a second. "Clary, you are _damn_ lucky I was close by. If I had been in Brooklyn..." He trailed off. "Okay, I need you to hold this scarf in place. Continuously apply pressure." He took her hands and used them to replace his own. He saw a long narrow cut running from her elbow to her wrist, but gritted his teeth, forcing himself to ignore it. He would heal her later. He needed to focus on the task at hand.

Focusing on that task became much more difficult when someone ran up behind them. Magnus whipped his head around to see Alec, out of breath and close to tears.

"Clary called me." He began between heaving breaths. "She said that Jace-" He stopped and clutched the skin just beneath his collar bone. His expression was one of shock and agony. He tugged at his shirt hurriedly until it ripped. Magnus could see his Parabatai rune glowing then fading. Magnus inhaled sharply, knowing exactly what that meant. Unfortunately, Alec knew as well. He met Magnus's eyes with an unmasked horror and fell to his knees before Jace. Magnus willed his powers to work, never wishing for magic more then he did in that moment.

"Jace you can't!" Alec yelled at his Parabatai, who didn't even stir from his state of unconsciousness. "You have to be okay! You can't leave me!" Magnus heard Clary choking on her own tears, and saw the fresh ones falling down Alec's face. He had seen Alec angry before, but right now he was _enraged_. He was livid with anger and fear, gripping Jace by the shoulders and shaking him to wake him up.

"Alec, darling, you need to let go of him. If you keep shaking him he wont heal." Magnus soothed, yet his tone was firm. He grabbed Alec's hands and forced him to let go of Jace's shoulders. Alec was trembling, his eyes never leaving Jace's face.

"Magnus?" He asked, needing confirmation of the warlock's presence.

"I'm here, love. You need to calm down and let me heal him."

"You don't... You don't understand." Alec said, shaking his head. "I already lost Max. I can't... I can't loose him too. I can't." His expression was feral again, his anger directed at Jace. "I can't loose you! _Jace Lightwood_, you have to wake up or _I swear to Raziel_—" He stopped, mid threat, shuddering as a new wave of pain consumed him. His rune was fading more quickly now. Magnus felt his heart clench when Alec used his own last name instead of Jace's. He was Alec's family. The closest thing to a brother that he had left.

"Alec, you have to back up." Magnus commanded. Alec glared at him through the pain.

"I am not leaving Jace, you can't make me—" He was cut off when Magnus blasted him backwards with a solid, magical force. He hit one of the brick walls and collapsed.

"I'm so, _so_, sorry, my love, but I had to." Magnus murmured to his now unconscious boyfriend. Clary was crying openly now, but not leaving Magnus's side. Magnus summoned all of his healing magic and channeled it into the open wound in Jace's flesh, directly on his heart.

He glanced over to Alec and noticed that the Parabatai rune was as good as gone, but he refused to accept that. He _couldn't_ accept that. Not while he was still alive and fighting

_You've always stuck around, even when we didn't want you there._ Magnus thought. His overuse of magic was draining him, making him weaker. _Don't you go leaving us now, Jace Herondale. Not when you have so many people who need you. I am immortal. I can feel that it is not your time yet. _Magnus shook with effort. Clary looked like the world was ending, and in a way, it was, for so many people. Magnus used up whatever magic he had left and continued his silent prayers.

_Stay with me. _

_For Maryse and Robert._

_For Clary and Isabelle._

_Stay for your Parabatai. _

_For Alec._

Jace inhaled and the world started turning again.

_**A/N: Did you let out a sigh of relief? This chapter was pretty intense, but I'll make it up to you by making the next chapter a little nicer.**_

_**Reviews make me super happy! (HINT HINT) Let me know if you writing has crushed your soul! (Thats the goal) ;)**_


	2. Chapter 2

_**A/N: This is a companion chapter that I hadn't originally planned on adding but here it is. Its much more Malec centric and less heartbreaking. **_

_**No real warnings for this chapter. **_

Alec woke up but didn't open his eyes. He couldn't. His head was throbbing, matching the pain on his collar bone. He felt sore all over, like he'd been hit by a truck. The skin of his neck and down to the left side his chest felt like it was singed by fire and still burning. He inhaled sharply, hoping the pain would subside sooner rather than later. Someone moved on his left, making a soft, slightly undignified, noise, indicating that Alec's awakening had startled them. He felt a warm hand surround his in a tight grip. He recognized the fingers as Magnus's, having felt his hands numerous times, and squeezed back gently.

"Alec?"

Alec could have smiled. He had been correct. Magnus was there. Everything was okay.

But then again, where was 'there'? Why couldn't he stop the burning of his skin?

He opened his eyes for the first time, desperately ignoring the pulsating pain in his temple. His eyes took a second to adjust to the light before he realized he was staring directly into two familiar feline eyes. He had never been happier to see that golden and green color.

"Magnus?" He croaked, blinking a few times and testing the movement of his neck. "What happened—Why am I in the infirmary?" He added suddenly, realizing where he was.

The infirmary looked the same as it always did. Pristine walls and floor tiles, cabinets and shelves stocked with supplies. It looked the same as it did when Magnus had cured him after his encounter with the Greater Demon, Abaddon. That was before they were dating, yet Alec remembers fondly of how Magnus's hands were the only thing left anchoring him to sanity. How he seemed to have feelings for Magnus even before he admitted it.

"Do you... What do you remember?" Magnus asked gently. Alec thought for a minute, his head still spinning. He was reminded of the burning at his throat and reached up to touch it. When his fingers brushed his skin, he cried out in pain. The memory of the night before was clear in his mind.

"Alec, don't do that! Be careful! You don't want to make it worse." Magnus said, snatching Alec's hand away from the skin at his throat.

"Be careful?" Alec repeated. "You're the one who_ flung me at a wall!_ On that note: What the _hell_ was that about?"

"I needed you to get away! I couldn't heal Jace if you were shaking him and yelling. You were making things worse, so I reacted." Magnus defended. "I'm sorry about that, alright? I threw you a little harder then I should have; hence your..." Magnus looked up at the ceiling, formulating the correct wording. "Minor skull fracture—"

"Magnus!" Alec exclaimed, bringing his left hand up to his head.

"Hey! I healed Jace! So maybe we can save this argument for later and you can skip to the gratitude." Magnus insisted. Alec froze.

"You... You healed Jace?" His words were full of disbelief. His _Parabatai _rune had faded almost completely. Once you get to that point, your _Parabatai_ is beyond help.

"I think a 'Thank you, Magnus; You are the greatest boyfriend in the whole wide world' is well deserved, don't you?"

Alec was still frozen in disbelief, but managed to reply.

"I... I just... Wow, Magnus...You..." He paused. "I just realized..."

"Just realized what?"

"That there is not a single part of me that is not _completely_ in love with you."

It took Magnus a whole .2 seconds to register this comment before kissing him deeply, carefully avoiding the patches inflamed skin. Alec tried to reciprocate the kiss but his body protested by sending waves of discomfort through him. He stopped trying and allowed Magnus to do as he pleased. When they broke apart Alec held Magnus's head down for a moment.

"When I get better, I'm going to thank you properly." He promised. Magnus's mouth quirked into an amused smile.

"I'm gonna hold you to that, Nephilim."

"Good god, Does ANYONE care that I'm in this room too?" An annoyed, groggy, and slightly scandalized, voice interrupted.

Alec tried to sit up but Magnus held him down. He was able to turn his head enough to see Jace lying in the bed next to his.

"Jace! You're alive." Alec breathed, happy to confirm his _Parabatai's_ safety with his own eyes.

"Unfortunately." Jace groaned sarcastically, flinching with irritation when every move meant more pain. "It doesn't help that I have to listen to you two love birds chatter on about your active sexual lives, while I, on the other hand, will not even be able to _move_ for several weeks."

"Stop your moaning, Blondie. Don't make me regret that I saved your sorry Shadowhunter behind." Magnus quipped.

"Speaking of which, how did you do it?" Jace inquired. "Judging by Alec's horrendous rune reaction, I was already down the rabbit hole. You can't revive someone _and _maintain their original _Parabatai_ bond. It isn't done."

"Well, _I_ did it. The least you could say is thank you." Magnus huffed.

"But why? Why did you do it?" Jace pestered. "Don't say it was, 'for Alec' 'cause that much is obvious. I want the other reasons." Magnus frowned.

"I've seen a lot of death in my life." Magnus started gravely. "In fact, I've seen _enough_ death. Your siblings here have seen death as well. They are young and didn't deserve another burden."

"Is that all?"

"No, actually, it isn't." He stated, taking the bait, his voice rising. "I will have you know that I have buried a Herondale once before and do not want to do it again; Even if _he_ was a pure hearted young man and _you_ are a selfish, entitled, _brat_. _Is that a good enough reason for you_?" Magnus spat. Alec rubbed circles in Magnus's hand with his thumb. His eyes told Magnus to leave it and ignore Jace's attempts to wind him up.

For the first time in a long time, Jace had nothing negative to say. No witty remark. Not one attempt at a smart-ass reply.

"Thank you." Jace said after a long minute, seeming somewhat surprised at himself for actually saying it aloud. Alec looked astonished and Magnus was speechless. "For saving my life and our _Parabatai_ bond." He continued. "Alec means the world to me. My debt is beyond what can possibly be repaid. You will forever have my gratitude." Magnus took a second before he nodded once, acknowledging Jace's sudden change of mindset.

"You two should get some rest." Magnus said finally. He sounded exhausted himself. "You need to heal and I need some time to recharge. My magic is still on low from last night. You gave us quite a scare, Mr. Herondale. Sweet dreams; don't let the vampires bite!"

Jace rolled his eyes before closing them and beginning to drift off, not needing to be told twice.

"Are you going to leave?" Alec whispered. A drowsy, apologetic, smile told him the answer was, unfortunately, yes.

"I'll be back in the morning, love, I promise."

"Okay."

Magnus leaned down and kissed Alec's forehead. Alec closed his eyes and relished in the few brief moments of contact before Magnus stood up straight. He brushed the hair away from Alec's eyes and smiled.

"I love you." Magnus whispered. Alec looked up at him.

"I love you too."

Magnus's fingers trailed down Alec's cheek before he started to walk away.

"Get some rest." Magnus said upon approaching the door. Alec nodded and closed his eyes once more, glad that everyone was safe... For now at least.

But that was the best someone like him could hope for.

So he slept.

_**A/N: Thank you for sticking around! This chapter was equally as fun to write and I enjoyed it **_**_immensely! I hope this makes up for the earlier trauma..._**

**_Leave your comments, questions, insults, and compliments in the review!_**


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